POSSIBILITIES THE EXPANDING “shut that whole thing down:” A SURVEY OF RESTRICTIONS EVEN IN CASES OF August 2013 NATIONAL WOMEN’S LAW CENTER

ABOUT THE CENTER The National Women’s Law Center is a nonprofit organization working to expand opportunities and eliminate barriers for women and their families, with a major emphasis on education and employment opportunities, women’s health and , and family economic security.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This report was written by Sharon Levin and Gretchen Borchelt, with assistance from Marcia Greenberger, Judy Waxman, and Karen Schneider. Research assistance was provided by National Women’s Law Center interns Nicole Chenelle, Rachel Easter, Charlotte Joseph Cassel, and Bethany Van Kampen. Special thanks to Elizabeth Nash of the Guttmacher Insti- tute and to Ilana D. Waxman, Andree J. Goldsmith, Connie P. Sung, Parimal Garg, and Roberto R. Saldana of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP for their assistance in the research contained in this report. Beth Stover designed this report.

© 2013 National Women’s Law Center II “SHUT THAT WHOLE THING DOWN” REPORT NWLC NATIONAL WOMEN’S LAW CENTER

Summary

One year ago, then-U.S. Representative tried to explain his opposition to abortion even in cases of rape:

“It seems to me, first of all, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare. IF IT’S A LEGITIMATE RAPE, THE FEMALE BODY HAS WAYS TO TRY TO SHUT THAT WHOLE THING DOWN.”1

THE PUBLIC OUTRAGE AND PRESS ATTENTION THAT FOLLOWED AKIN’S BLATANTLY FALSE REMARKS WERE BROAD, LOUD, AND SUSTAINED.2 In the weeks that followed, the furor kept growing as several other candidates, including , expressed sentiments similar to Akin’s.3 By the end of the 2012 election cycle, Akin and others lost their elections for the Senate, and media commentators attributed their losses as due in large part to the views they expressed about rape and abortion.4 Leading anti-choice politicians and commentators urged their colleagues to stop talking about rape, although they did not urge them to change their views on the topic.5

While Todd Akin’s statement about rape and was false – studies show that women become pregnant due to rape at the same or at a slightly higher rate as consensual sex6 – elected officials and political commentators continue to spread similarly untrue information. U.S. Representatives Trent Franks and , for example, have made statements indicating their agreement with Akin in defending their anti-choice views.7 Other proponents of abortion restrictions have compared rape to a traffic accident or having a baby out of wedlock.8

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Anti-abortion bills are being debated – and passed – in the context of these falsehoods. In fact, this survey of abortion legislation introduced in state legislatures and the in the first six months of 2013 makes it clear that these politicians not only articulate the same rhetoric but also have the same agenda as before: to outlaw abortion, to make it more difficult and expensive to obtain, and to shame and judge women obtaining abortion, even when the pregnancy results from rape. The dismissive and false remarks these same politicians continue to make indicate that they have learned nothing from the public outcry following Akin’s comments.

A survey by the National Women’s Law Center (NWLC) of anti-abortion legislation in the states and U.S. Congress between January 2013, when state legislatures and Congress reconvened, and June 2013 demonstrates:

• 86 percent (235 provisions) of the 273 provisions that were introduced in state legislatures to restrict a woman’s access to abortion apply to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

• 71 percent (27 provisions) of the 38 state provisions restricting women’s access to abortion enacted by the states apply to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

• 72 percent (18 bills) of the 25 bills introduced in the United States Congress to restrict a woman’s access to abortion apply to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

These restrictions range from forcing a woman who has been raped to carry her pregnancy to term, to denying her insurance coverage for an abortion, to forcing her to undergo a physically invasive ultrasound or listen to the fetal heartbeat, to allowing hospitals to refuse to provide her an abortion, to forcing her to receive inaccurate and biased information designed to dissuade her from having an abortion.

The results of the survey do not reflect the full scope of abortion restrictions introduced and enacted at the state and federal level. The survey did not consider bills where a rape exception would not be pertinent, such as abortion facility requirements. Although not included in this survey, these bills cause great harm to women, because they are intended to shut down virtually all clinics, and therefore make unavailable in all circumstances, including for arising from rape.

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State Legislatures and Congress are Currently Considering –and Passing–Bills that Would Restrict or Ban Abortion in Cases of Rape

TO ASSESS THE MAGNITUDE OF THE ABORTION RESTRICTIONS PERTAINING TO RAPE SURVIVORS, NWLC reviewed legislation from the first six months of 2013 that either would ban abortion outright, erect hurdles to abortion access for a woman seeking the procedure, or dissuade a woman from having an abortion.9

Bills generally fell into the following categories:

• Outlawing abortion (these included bills establishing “fetal personhood” that would result in a ban on abortion, bans on pre-viability abortion after an arbitrary number of weeks, and bans based on a woman’s personal reason for abortion); • Prohibiting women from purchasing a comprehensive insurance plan that includes coverage for abortion; • Requiring women to undergo medically unnecessary and physically invasive procedures or delays or to receive inaccurate information before obtaining an abortion; • Restricting women’s access to non-surgical (medication) abortion; • Interfering with a woman’s personal decision-making about whether to end a pregnancy by allowing entities (such as hospitals) and individuals to refuse to provide these necessary health services; and • Other bills that directly restrict access to abortion including in cases where pregnancy is the result of rape.10

As explained in more detail below, the results show that the vast majority of these anti-abortion bills introduced in states and in Congress in the first six months of 2013 apply to women whose pregnancies result from rape. Even where legislators added an exception for rape survivors, they introduced additional obstacles that would effectively make such an exception meaningless, such as a requirement that women report the rape to authorities.

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State Legislators Introduced Hundreds of Anti-Abortion Provisions That Apply to Rape Survivors in Just the First Six Months of 2013

IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2013, 86 percent of provisions limiting or prohibiting women’s access to abortion failed to protect a woman who became pregnant due to rape. Seventy-one percent of provisions enacted by state legislatures in the first six months of 2013 did not include an exception for a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

STATE LEGISLATION, BY THE NUMBERS

Number of Number of Anti-Abortion Provisions Anti-Abortion Provisions Surveyed without Rape Exception Percentage

Introduced* 273 235 86 percent

Enacted 38 27 71 percent

*Of the bills that were introduced that do not apply restrictions to rape survivors, 34 percent (13 out of 38) only protect a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape if she reports the rape, even though fewer than half of rape survivors make such reports

PROHIBITING RAPE SURVIVORS FROM OBTAINING AN ABORTION • Legislators in states including , Florida, Iowa, Oklahoma, and South Carolina introduced bills in the first six months of 2013 that would ban all abortion – including for women whose pregnancies have resulted from rape. • One ban on abortion introduced in Mississippi without an exception for rape declares: “The State of Mississippi shall not punish the crime of with the death penalty, and neither shall persons conceived through a sexual assault be punished with the loss of his or her life.”11 • North Dakota passed two bans on abortion that would apply to a woman pregnant due to rape – one at six weeks of pregnancy, before most women even know they are pregnant, and one at 20 weeks of pregnancy.12 The legislature also passed a resolution to put so-called “fetal personhood” on the 2014 ballot, asking voters to define a “human being at any stage of development.”13 Approving the ballot measure would ban abortion in all circumstances, including rape.

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FORCING A WOMAN WHOSE PREGNANCY RESULTED FROM RAPE TO UNDERGO ULTRASOUNDS AND LISTEN TO THE FETAL HEARTBEAT In at least 16 states across the country, abortion opponents considered bills in the first six months of 2013 that would force rape survivors to undergo medically unnecessary and physically invasive ultrasounds before they could obtain an abortion, listen to a description of the ultrasound image, and/or listen to the fetal heartbeat. Indiana enacted a mandatory ultrasound provision that applies to a woman pregnant due to rape.14 These measures are premised on the assumption that women, including those who have been raped, do not fully grasp the consequences of their decision, and therefore must be subjected to these procedures and lectures. “RAPE TAKING AWAY INSURANCE COVERAGE FOR ABORTION FROM WOMEN WHO HAVE BEEN RAPED IS A HORRIBLE At least 30 provisions introduced in state legislatures in the first CRIME. six months of 2013 would prohibit private insurance plans – either in the new health insurance marketplaces or in all plans in IT IS ABSOLUTELY the state – from covering abortion even in cases of rape. Five DEVASTATING. of those provisions would go even further and change existing laws on insurance coverage of abortion to eliminate explicit BUT DO WE BELIEVE protections for women who are pregnant due to rape, leaving survivors of rape without the coverage they currently have. IN CAPITAL

FORCING WOMEN WHO ARE PREGNANT DUE TO RAPE PUNISHMENT TO GET THE GOVERNOR’S APPROVAL FOR MEDICAID FOR THOSE REIMBURSEMENT A new law in Iowa gives the governor the responsibility of CHILDREN? approving abortions covered under the Medicaid program ” North Dakota State Senator Margaret Sitte (R), for low-income women, including those where the pregnancy responding to concerns that abortion bans would resulted from rape.15 Therefore, a low-income woman force North Dakota women who have been raped seeking an abortion after being raped must wait for the to carry the pregnancy to term, governor to decide whether he thinks her situation merits March 18th, 2013 approval and therefore payment.

FORCING RAPE SURVIVORS TO RECEIVE BIASED COUNSELING At least 10 states considered provisions that would require women, including those who are pregnant due to rape, to receive inaccurate or biased information intended to shame and dissuade them from having an abortion. One Alabama bill would have required women seeking an abortion – including those whose pregnancies resulted from rape – to be told that “Abortion

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“IT’S SIMPLY, LIKE, NOBODY PLANS TO HAVE AN ACCIDENT IN A CAR . . . , NOBODY PLANS TO HAVE THEIR HOME FLOODED. YOU HAVE TO BUY EXTRA INSURANCE FOR THOSE.” Barbara Listing, President of Right to Life of Michigan, arguing that Michigan women should not be able to buy comprehensive health insurance plans that include abortion, but should instead be forced to buy separate insurance coverage, even in the case of rape or , May 22nd, 2013

terminates the life of a whole, separate, unique, living human being.”16 Provisions enacted in Kansas require women, includ- ing those whose pregnancies resulted from rape, to be told inaccurate information about abortion and an unproven increased breast cancer risk, as well as disputed information about “fetal pain.”17 The Kansas bill also requires abortion clinics and providers to post a sign that includes the statement: “The father of your child must provide support for the child. . . .”

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS AND OTHER OBSTACLES TO CARE ARE OFTEN INCLUDED WHEN A LAW DOES INCLUDE AN EXCEPTION FOR RAPE SURVIVORS The majority of rape cases are unreported.18 Rape survivors’ reasons for not reporting include concerns about privacy, fear of reprisal, and police bias.19 However, in a number of bills restricting abortion where state legislators have included a rape exception, this exception has been narrowed by restrictions like reporting requirements that would require a rape survivor to overcome additional obstacles in order to access abortion.

• Of the abortion restrictions that contain a rape exception, one-third require rape survivors to report the crime. • One Minnesota bill banning insurance coverage of abortion in the state exchange would have allowed coverage in cases of rape only where a report is made within 48 hours of the attack.20 • In one Indiana bill prohibiting University of Indiana hospitals from performing abortions, the rape must not only be reported, but also “verified.”21 • A new Pennsylvania law banning insurance coverage of abortion in the state exchange specifies that, in order to receive insurance coverage of abortion, the rape must be reported, “together with the identity of the offender, if known, to a law enforcement agency having the requisite jurisdiction and [must be] personally reported by the victim.”22 • When legislators in Wisconsin tried to remove reporting requirements from a bill restricting abortion before it became law, they were unsuccessful.23 Now in Wisconsin, a woman pregnant due to rape who wants an abortion must either report the crime or submit to a medically unnecessary, physically invasive ultrasound first.

Conditioning the rape exception on having filed a formal report means that these abortion restrictions will still apply in the majority of cases where a pregnancy results from rape, since many women who have been raped are not in a position to make such a report.

A BILL INTRODUCED IN NEW would have criminalized women pregnant due to rape who seek abortions by defining “tampering with evidence” to include obtaining an abortion after rape.

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72 Percent of the Bills Introduced in Congress to Ban Abortion Apply to Rape Survivors

IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2013, 72 percent of the anti-abortion bills introduced in the United States Congress failed to include an exception for rape. In addition, the only major piece of relevant legislation considered by either chamber applied to women pregnant due to rape until public outrage forced the bill’s lead sponsor to put in a limited exception – and he objected to doing so.

FEDERAL LEGISLATION BY THE NUMBERS

Number of Number of Anti-Abortion Bills Anti-Abortion Bills Surveyed without Rape Exception Percentage

Total 25 18 72 percent

House 12 8 66 percent Senate 13 10 77 percent

By Type

Ban on Coverage of Abortion 10 3 30 percent Ban on Abortion 11 11 100 percent Refusals 4 4 100 percent

18 OUT OF 25 BILLS INTRODUCED IN THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS APPLY TO WOMEN WHOSE PREGNANCIES RESULTED FROM RAPE From January through June 2013, 25 bills directly restricting abortion were introduced in the United States House of Representatives and the . Of these bills, 18 apply to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

In the House, 12 bills were introduced that would ban abortion, ban insurance coverage of abortion or permit institutions or individuals to refuse to provide abortions. Of these bills, 8 did not have a rape exception when they were introduced. In the Senate, 13 bills were introduced and 10 did not have exceptions for rape.

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The bills introduced in Congress fell into three general categories:

• Bans on Abortion: 11 bills were introduced banning abortion in some or all circumstances. All of these bills applied to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape: • 3 bills were introduced that would establish “fetal” personhood and would thus ban all abortion, and could even prohibit some forms of and treatments. Not only did these bills fail to exclude a woman who was pregnant due to rape, they also fail to protect a woman’s life. • 8 bills were introduced that banned abortion in some circumstances. All of these bills applied to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape. • Bans on Abortion Coverage: Several bills were introduced that would prohibit federal insurance coverage for abortion services. Of the three general categories of federal bills, the bills in this category were the most likely to have an exception for a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape. (7 out of the 10 bills introduced included a rape excep- tion). • Bills Allowing Institutions or Individuals To Refuse to Participate in Abortions: 4 bills were introduced that would allow an institution (such as a hospital), an individual, or an insurance company to refuse to participate in, provide coverage for, or even make referrals for an abortion. All of these bills apply to a woman whose pregnancy resulted from rape.

“THE INCIDENCE OF RAPE RESULTING IN PREGNANCY ARE VERY LOW.” U.S. Representative Trent Franks (R-AR), in the House Judiciary Committee, explaining why he did not think it was necessary to add an exception for rape to a measure banning abortion after 20 weeks, June 12th, 2013

THE HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE VOTED AGAINST INCLUDING AN EXCLUSION FOR RAPE SURVIVORS FROM THE ONE MAJOR PIECE OF ANTI-ABORTION LEGISLATION PASSED BY THE HOUSE IN THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 2013 The House passed a ban on abortions at 20 weeks of pregnancy (H.R. 1797). As originally introduced in April 2013, this ban applied to a woman who is pregnant due to rape. Moreover, when a member of the House Judiciary Committee tried to add a rape exception to the bill, it was defeated by a vote of 13 - 17.24 During the debate on that amendment, bill sponsor and Subcommittee Chair Trent Franks stated that“[t]he incidence of rape resulting in pregnancy are very low.”25

Representative Franks’ comments and the Committee vote drew a great deal of public opposition.26 Due to this public pressure, the bill’s proponents added a narrow provision excluding rape survivors from the bill’s restrictions – but with a reporting requirement.27 Ultimately, the bill passed the House 228 - 196.28

Not only did Representative Franks make the Akin-like comment, but it was only after the adverse public response that he belatedly tried to “clarify” his comment.29 In fact, rather than back away from the controversy, he complained that the bill opponents had “inject[ed] a false issue” of rape into the debate and then he sent out fundraising requests based on the event.30

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Conclusion

TODD AKIN’S COMMENT A YEAR AGO IGNITED A PUBLIC DEBATE ABOUT EXTREME ABORTION RESTRICTIONS THAT APPLY TO A WOMAN WHOSE PREGNANCY RESULTED FROM RAPE. Many Americans loudly voiced their opposition to his statement and to these bills. Many also assumed that the public outcry during the 2012 campaign and the election losses that resulted from it meant the debate over rape and further restrictions on rape survivors’ access to abortion was over. However, this has not been the case. Legislators are still introducing and enacting extreme bills restricting abortion, and the vast majority apply to women who are pregnant due to rape. The bills are often accompanied by public statements that are as extreme and false as Akin’s.

ONE YEAR LATER, THIS DEBATE HAS NOT BEEN “SHUT DOWN” AFTER ALL.

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Endnotes

1 Jaco Report: Todd Akin (Fox2news television broadcast, Aug. 19, 2012), available at http://fox2now.com/2012/08/19/the-jaco-report-august-19-2012/. 2 See, e.g., John Eligon, Senate Candidate Provokes Ire With ‘Legitimate Rape’ Comment, THE TIMES (Aug. 19, 2012 ), http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/20/us/politics/todd-akin-provokes-ire-with-legitimate-rape-comment.html?_r=0. 3 See, e.g., Mike Baker, GOP Hopeful: ‘Rape Thing’ Not Cause For Abortion, (Oct. 31, 2012), http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1012/83142.html; Patrick Marley, Rep. Roger Rivard Criticized For ‘Some Girls Rape Rasy’ Remark, J. Sent. (Oct. 10, 2012), http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/state-legislator-criticized-for-comments-on-rape-hj76f4k-173587961.html; Michael McAuliff, Richard Mourdock On Abortion: Is ‘Something God Intended’ [Update], THE HUFFINGTON POST (Oct. 23, 2012), http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/23/richard-mourdock-abortion_n_2007482.html (“I think even if life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that is something that God intended to happen.”); Igor Volsky, Maryland Congressmen Says ‘Few Pregnancies’ Result From Rape, THINK PROGRESS (Sept. 1, 2012), http://thinkprogress.org/health/2012/09/01/787471/maryland-congressman-argues-that-few-pregnancies-result-from-rape/. 4 Republican Candidates Lost After Rape Comments, ABC NEWS (Nov. 7, 2012), http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-07/republican-candidates-lose-after-rape-comments/4358902. 5 See, e.g., Karen Hughes, Communication Lessons From the Election, (Nov. 9, 2012), http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1112/83632.html; COLLEGE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE, GRAND OLD PART FOR A BRAND NEW GENERATION, available at: http://images.skem1.com/client_id_32089/Grand_Old_Party_for_a_Brand_New_Generation.pdf. 6 Glen Kessler, The Claim That The Incidence of Rape Resulting In Pregnancy Is ‘Very Low’, (June 13, 2013), http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/fact-checker/post/the-claim-that-the-incidence-of-rape-resulting-in-pregnancy-is-very- low/2013/06/12/936bc45e-d3ad-11e2-8cbe-1bcbee06f8f8_blog.html (reviewing studies that show that the incidence of rape resulting in pregnancy is not low). 7 See, e.g., Kevin Cirilli, Phil Gingrey: Todd Akin ‘Partly Right’ On Rape, POLITICO (Jan. 11, 2013), http://www.politico.com/story/2013/01/phil-gingrey-todd-akin-partly-right-on-rape-86059.html; John Parkinson, Rep. Trent Franks Claims ‘Very Low’ Pregnancy Rate From Rape, ABC NEWS (June 12, 2013), http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/06/rep-trent-franks-claims-very-low-pregnancy-rate-from-rape/; Alex Seitz-Wald, Latest GOP Shocking Rape Gaffe, SALON (Mar. 2, 2013), http://www.salon.com/2013/03/02/another_goper_has_a_todd_akin_moment/. 8 Laura Bassett, Tom Smith, GOP Senate Candidate: Pregnancy From Rape Similar To ‘Having A Baby Out Of Wedlock’, THE HUFFINGTON POST (Aug. 27, 2012), http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/27/tom-smith-rape_n_1834234.html; Tara Culp-Ressler, Anti-Choice Leader: Rape Is Like A Car Accident, So Women Should Buy ‘Extra Insurance’ For Abortion, THINK PROGRESS (May 24, 2013), http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/05/24/2060191/rape-car-insurance-michigan/. 9 As explained in the text above, not included were certain types of bills that could be harmful to rape survivors but where adding a rape exception would not make sense in terms of the nature of the bill, such as a provision making abortion clinics comply with medically unnecessary, cosmetic building requirements. 10 At the state level, legislation introduced between January 1, 2013 and June 13, 2013 was reviewed. State legislation is counted by provision rather than by bill, since at the state level a single bill could include many different types of restrictions. At the federal level, legislation introduced between January 1 – June 30, 2013 was reviewed. Legislation is counted by bill. 11 H.B. 819, 2013 Leg., Reg. Sess. (Miss., 2013). 12 H.B. 1456, 63d Leg. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (N.D. 2013) (to be codified as N.D. CENT. CODE. § 14-02.1 (2013)); H.B. 2368, 63d Leg. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (N.D. 2013) (to be codified as N.D. CENT. CODE. §§ 14-02.1-01, 14.02.1-02, 14.02.1-07 (2013)). 13 N.D. S. Con. Res. 4009, 63d Leg. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (2013). 14 S.B. 371, 118th Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Ind. 2013). 15 S.F. 446, 85th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Iowa 2013). 16 H.B. 360, 2013 Leg., Reg. Sess. (Ala. 2013). 17 H.B. 2253, 2013 Leg., Reg. Sess. (Kan. 2013). 18 An average of 54% of assaults in the last five years were not reported.” Rates, RAPE, ABUSE & INCEST NATIONAL NETWORK, http://www.rainn.org/get-information/statistics/reporting-rates (last visited Aug. 7, 2013) (citing MARCUS BERZOFSKY ET AL., U.S. DEP’T OF JUSTICE, VICTIMIZATIONS NOT REPORTED TO THE POLICE, 2006-2010, (2012), available at http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/vnrp0610.pdf). 19 Reporting Rape, RAPE, ABUSE & INCEST NATIONAL NETWORK, http://www.rainn.org/get-information/legal-information/reporting-rape (last visited Aug. 14, 2013). 20 H.F. 5, 88th Leg., Reg. Sess. (Minn. 2013). 21 H.B. 1336, 118th Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Ind. 2013). 22 H.B. 818, 2013 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Pa. 2013), referencing 18 PA. CONS. STAT. § 3215(c). 23 Assemb. Amend. 12 to S.B. 206, 2013 State Leg., Reg. Sess. (Wis. 2013). 24 Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act: Mark-Up of H.R. 1797 Before the H. Comm. on the Judiciary, 113th Cong. June 12, 2013 (vote on amendment to include rape exception). 25 John Parkinson, Rep. Trent Franks Claims ‘Very Low’ Pregnancy Rate From Rape, ABC NEWS (June 12, 2013), http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/06/rep-trent-franks-claims-very-low-pregnancy-rate-from-rape/. 26 See, e.g., White House: Trent Franks Rape Comment Shows An ‘Alarming Disregard For Women’, THE HUFFINGTON POST (June 13, 2013), http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/13/white-house-trent-franks_n_3436713.html. 27 Kathryn Smith, House Adds Rape Exception To Abortion Ban Bill, POLITICO (June 14, 2013), http://www.politico.com//story/2013/06/house-adds-rape-exception-to-abortion-ban-bill-92833.html. 28 159 Cong. Rec. D590, D593 (daily ed. June 18, 2013) (House of Representatives final vote on H.R. 1797). 29 Kathryn Smith and Ginger Gibson, Trent Franks: ‘Incidence of Rape Resulting in Pregnancy Are Very Low’ POLITICO (June 13, 2013), (http://www.politico.com/story/2013/06/trent-franks-incidence-of-rape-resulting-in-pregnancy-are-very-low-92650.html (“Franks did not immediately try to clarify his remarks when challenged by Lofgren, but attempted to do so after the committee returned from a lunch break. . . ’Just to make clear my point earlier, pregnancies from rape that result in abortion after the beginning of the sixth month are very rare,’ he said”). 30 Rebekah L. Sanders, Franks Defends Remarks On Rape, REPUBLIC (June 12, 2013), http://www.azcentral.com/news/politics/articles/20130612franks-defends-remarks-rape.html (“’I think that’s such an incredibly unfair thing, that all of a sudden because someone is arrogant enough to inject a false issue and try to distort the issue and make it look like we don’t care about the women, that somehow they’re the heroes’”); Amanda Terkel, Trent Franks Fundraises In Wake of Controversial Rape Remark, The HUFFINGTON POST (June 14, 2013), http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/14/trent-franks-fundraising-rape_n_3441563.html?view=screen.

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